The hearing comes at the twilight of Blinken's diplomatic career, with only weeks left before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
The Texas Republican who chairs the committee, Michael McCaul, opened the hearing saying “This catastrophic event was the beginning of a failed foreign policy that lit the world on fire. I welcome your testimony today and hope you use this opportunity to take accountability for the disastrous withdrawal."
Blinken opened his appearance before the committee by turning to families of U.S. forces killed in the withdrawal and apologizing to them. Cries of “genocide” and other protests from demonstrators in the audience repeatedly interrupted his testimony.
Blinken again defended the Biden administration’s handling of the withdrawal, saying that the pullout deal that Trump negotiated with the Taliban before leaving office left him no viable alternative.
His long-awaited testimony comes months after House Republicans issued a scathing report on their investigation into the withdrawal, blaming the disastrous end on Biden's administration.
The withdrawal culminated in the Abbey Gate terrorist attack on August 26, 2021, which killed 13 U.S. servicemembers and dozens more were wounded. More than 170 Afghan civilians were killed.
Millions of dollars in sophisticated U.S. military equipment was also left behind.
